It was another long, boring, and dry day on campus. He was tired. The day had drained him to the core. Even though it was a Friday, it was not like he had anything to do. His life was simple. One of his students once said that he lived an eccentric life. Eccentric because he did not go to the clubs on weekends. Eccentric because he refused to conform to the standards deemed worthy of a working individual. He lived a simple life of wake up, go to work, eat and sleep. Very rarely did he ever break that routine.
As the day was coming to an end, his supervisor called him for a quick meeting. His supervisor told him to clear one of the student consultation venues to have their meeting there. He chose the nearest one to the staffroom as he was lazy to walk to the other side of campus. He did not expect anyone in the venue. However, as he opened the door, he was left speechless.
“Oh sorry,” the young lady said.
The greatest dilemma for the male lecturer. Morals and professionalism call for the male lecturer to maintain cordial and absolute respect for his female students. When consulting with the female student, the male lecturer must keep his door open at all times. If not possible, the male lecturer must meet the female student in an open area where there are witnesses abound. Not only does this ensure that the male lecturer respects his female student, but it also assures the female student that she can be safe with him. The mistrust society has, especially towards Black men, is entrenched deep into the fabrics of society. So the male lecturer must take this into consideration when dealing with his female students.
But at that moment in time, he forget he was a lecturer. The subtle beauty of the young girl took him by his blindside. He was totally caught off guard by her beauty. She looked young but not too young. It could be that she was returning to school. She did not seem to be fresh from high school. Startled, she quickly packed her bag and left the venue.
On his way back to his place, he could not get her off his mind. He was embarrassed about it. He was embarrassed that he could not stop thinking about a student. He was embarrassed that he was wearing his walking shoes and torn jeans. He was embarrassed that he hadn’t worn his cologne earlier. He was embarrassed that he could not keep his eyes off her as she packed her bag. How embarrassed she must have felt to have a lecturer look at her that way. He later arrived at his place. He wished she was by his side.
He watched an hour of mindless television trying to distract himself. However, he could not shake off the image of the young lady in his mind. She haunted his mind with such great intensity that she manifested herself in his dreams.
She was sitting by the campus bench alone. The dream was foggy but he could tell that it was her. In dreams, the controls of the conscious mind lose grip on one’s emotions. Led by emotions of love and lust, he approached her and sat by her.
“Hi. I think I saw you earlier,” he said to her.
“Hi, I think I saw you too earlier,” she responded. She had headphones resting around her neck.
A moment of silence was shared between them. Between them, their feelings danced to the beat of their hearts. The air began to thicken with tangible lust. The space between them began to be saturated with salacious love. It felt good. But words not spoken filled the silence. He slid a bit closer to her to silence those words.
Seemed she felt the same way too because she slid closer to him as well. This caused a subtle touch between their fingers. Like a metal rod next to exposed electricity, the touch intensified their feelings. His heart pounded enough blood to charge words to escape his mouth.
“What music are you listening to?” he said. These were not the words he hoped.
“Uhm, nothing really. Just wearing headphones to avoid talking to people,” she responded.
“Or I see. Well, this is strange that I’d be speaking randomly with a student,” his heart began to beat faster,” but I like you,” He said.
“But..” she said.
“I know what you will say but do not say it. It is okay. Love is powerful. God calls Himself love," He said not knowing where the courage to say such came from.
"Love cannot be stopped by rules created by man. Like a powerful wave, love cannot be stopped by anything man-made. The same with its sister lust. Yes, I am your lecturer but I am also a man. And you are a woman who I have found attractive,” He said. He wondered where the confidence to speak such words come from.
“I like you too. I have seen you a couple of times on campus. I have wished that you were a student, so I can love you. I had wished that it was okay for us to see each other, so I can have you. But I know that your job does not allow it. Your job, created by man, stops God living in our hearts,” she responded.
He thought hard about what to say next. Unbeknown to them, the dream had changed form. They were no longer at the campus bench. The Sandman had teleported them to a hotel room in Mauritius.
They lay in each other’s arms, comfortable, in all white sheets. As she raised her eyes to look into his soul, he woke up.
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